Lying, Cheating Game
by TheDeep
Summary: As a young officer in the Chicago Police, Mac is about to learn one of the most important lessons: Trust no one. This series of events will reveal to him that his partner is in no way who he thought she was. Faced with a web of lies that could lead him to lose his life and the life of a young girl, Mac has to find a way to get both himself and the girl out alive.
1. Chapter 1: Rookie

**So, this idea occurred to me over this past weekend-ish and I got the thinking about where to take it, and I decided it would be a lot of fun to work with it! So, viola!**

**ooOOoo**

"You know, you should really find yourself a girl, rookie," Officer Sasha Long advised her 22 year-old partner sitting in the passenger seat of their patrol car.

"You're _still_ calling me 'rookie'? Really?" Her partner looked over at her with a frown crossing his lips and in his blue eyes. The look on the young man's face made Sasha laugh.

"Hell yeah I am, Taylor," she said as she turned the patrol car down a side street to continue their patrol of the city. "You still ain't used to it?"

Taylor smirked as he turned his attention to the city outside of the window, "I was used to it earlier, Sasha, but I've been working with you for what? Two years now? I think you can call me 'Mac' now," he pointed out, grinning.

"Oh, so I finally am able to use that wonderful nickname your father gave you?" Sasha shot back, laughing.

The younger officer was frowning again after this comment. "Is that telling me that you have a problem with my name?" he asked.

Sasha smirked. "Just like I can't get over your middle name either," she said.

Mac rolled his eyes, not looking over at his partner. "I'm not gonna grace that 'insult' with a response," he said, doing air quotes with his hands when he said 'insult.'

"Does it really shove that burr up your ass _that far_?" Sasha asked, shoulders shaking in barely contained laughter.

Now her partner shot a dangerous look at her through narrowed eyes, making the blue of his eyes all the more striking against the color of his uniform. "Seriously? You _make_ the burr that gets stuck in my damn ass!" he growled moodily, shifting in his seat and looking away from the older officer again.

Sasha finally laughed, clapping a hand against the steering wheel in her amusement with her partner's moody response. "Geez, did you have a rough day or something?"

But when she looked over at the young officer, he was sitting alert in his seat, his blue eyes trained on two men in hoodies by a car in the dark alley not too far from their patrol car.

"I think we've got trouble," he said, releasing himself from the protection of the seatbelt.

Sasha did the same as she shifted the car into park. The two officers locked eyes and nodded. It had become the replacement for Sasha's usual lecture to the younger officer about following protocol and procedure.

They stepped out and gently shut the doors behind themselves and walked calmly towards the two men by the car, who abruptly dropped their conversation as the two officers approached.

"You seem a little young to be out at this time of night," Mac commented as they walked in to earshot of the men, who had by now pulled down their hoods to reveal that they were surely no men. Young men at best. Still in their teens. "School still was on for tomorrow around here the last time I checked."

"Mind telling us what's going on?" Sasha asked as both her and Mac laid hands to their holsters. They both knew that this situation could quite easily get tricky, and Sasha had quickly taken the 22 year-old under her experienced wings when he was assigned as her partner after her former partner, and her teacher on the force, retired from patrol.

A shifty glance was swapped between the two youngsters before they both shifted their weight on their feet and looked back at the officers. "Nothing that concerns you fine people," one of them said.

Mac's narrowed eyes said he didn't quite buy the story, but he nodded. "Then I suggest you hightail it home. Consider this a warning. Your mothers telling you that you should be home by this hour isn't just her wanting to control you. It's pretty damned good advice. There's some people of the wrong crowds that hang around the city at times like this. Best for you to not tangle with them and wind up meeting with us in the wrong way a second time," he advised.

"Of course you're the one talking," the older one snorted, rolling his eyes. "You look like you still a greenhorn out here, brother. Who you think you are? _Advising _us like that?" he snapped.

A spark of fire lit in the young officer's blue eyes, but his tone was icily calm when he replied, "I _think_ and _know_ that I'm an officer, and I also know that you taking my advice is in your best interests, _brother_."

The younger man, who'd spoken first, elbowed the older one who'd just got a serious lesson from the two officers as far as he was concerned. "Dude, we should just scram. I'm not liking this!" he hissed quietly.

His partner shot a glare at him before sweeping his gaze over Mac like the young patrol officer was a piece of meat he could easily cut and devour. "This isn't over, _rookie_."

Mac simply nodded. "I'll keep a lookout. As you should, too," he said before him and Sasha turned on their heels and headed back for the patrol car, leaving the two young men to scramble back in their car and leave.

After they were back in the car, Sasha nodded in approval of her partner's reaction. "You handled that well for a youngster. Well done."

Mac nodded. "I learned it from the best: you can't let 'em get to you," he said with a small smile.

Sasha smiled in return. "I dunno if I'm the _best_, but we all do our best." She shifted the car back in to drive and continued their route silently for a few minutes, seemingly thinking over something.

The ever attentive young partner of hers noticed and remained silent and alert for more trouble, letting her think.

"I don't know if I ever properly congratulated you, Taylor. Two years have turned you into quite a fine patrolman," Sasha finally said, looking over at him.

Another small smile spread across Mac's face. "Just doing the job," he said. "That's what I signed on to do and I'm happy to do it."

Sasha smirked a bit and looked back to the street, lit by the streetlights now that it was rather dark. "How did I know you'd say something like that, rookie?"

Now Mac smirked. "You know me too well, Sasha."

Sasha smirked again. "Nah. I just know you're my partner."


	2. Chapter 2: Teaching Methods

**Sorry, first off, but I bring good news for the both of us! I've finally set down the Xbox controller because I have won victory over the two games I was so attached to. XD So, now that I'm not restless with the wanting to finish the games, I can actually sit down and put time into this with a decent focus! I wanna thank you all though – you keeping on me about all these stories is actually really great for me. The fact that you'd do that means a lot. So, I just wanted to say thanks guys!**

**ooOOoo**

"You're in late, youngster." The greeting instantly brought a smile to the young patrol officer's face. The next few moments as he was sliding his jacket off his arms brought with them the characteristic shuffle of fifty-something – he didn't dare ask exact age – year old red-headed Marge, as the young man had gotten to know the southern woman.

"Late patrol," Mac told her as Marge looked him over with a small frown and easily swept a hand over his shoulder to smooth out a spot where his uniform was a little ruffled. The action made Mac smirk.

"You remind me of your old man when you walk in wearing that uniform, young man," Marge said as she turned on her heels and headed back for the kitchen.

Mac smiled slightly and pulled his shoes off before he followed the older woman. "And what poison are you trying to give to me tonight?" he asked, walking up and scanning his gaze over what Marge had set out on the table.

Momentarily, he skittered, albeit smirking like a madman, out of Marge's way when the women of the house slapped his arm, muttering a curse that sounded something like the usual scolding Mac managed to scrape out of her,

"Damn vulture! Get your ass out of my way, Taylor, or I'll have to actually use poison!"

"You know dad would absolutely hunt you down if you tried," Mac interjected before she could continue as he turned to change out of his uniform.

"I can still kick your ass, you rookie smartass!" he heard Marge yell after him.

Mac chuckled. "Two years and I _still_ haven't cleaned you up!"

Minutes later and Marge already had prepared a response, "Don't expect to, young man. You don't get this cookin' anywhere, you city animal."

"Animal, huh?" Mac asked. "Is that what I am to you?"

A smile slipped across Marge's lips and Mac didn't miss it at all. "You might as well be a damned old dog, McKenna. I could summon you with my cookin' and you'd be here within the quarter hour," she said.

Mac smiled softly. The use of his full first name was something he let few people get away with nowadays, and Marge was one of those few. The way the older woman took him in and treated him was something Mac had high respect and admiration for. "Truth be told; Chicago doesn't have too many fine chefs like yourself, Marge."

Marge pushed a full plate in to his hands as he leaned against the doorframe at the entrance of the kitchen. "Eat up, you skinny dog," she said with a glint of amusement in her eyes.

Mac stood and joined her at the table. "I can't get by you on anything, can I?"

Marge shook her head. "No," she answered promptly. "You're a twig in comparison to my ass, Taylor."

"Marge!" Mac shot a look at her through narrowed eyes. "You're fine!"

"Tell that to my doctor. Oh, and you might as well tell him I'll quit smoking one day as well!" Marge snapped back, rolling her eyes.

Mac smirked softly and shook his head. "Oh, I'm sure you'll find the path."

"And your father and yourself, too?" Marge asked. "That's a hell of a hurdle."

Mac grimaced. "Don't even say 'nicotine,' if you don't mind," he said. "By the time I process that, my brain's already yelling curses at me," he added, standing and rooting through the cupboards until he found a knife he could use.

Marge nodded. "So, I assume you don't want one later?"

Mac shot another look at her. "It's not that I don't want one, it's that I'll kick my own ass if I allow myself the pleasure," he replied, sitting down at the table again.

"Not my place to make your wars harder, youngster," Marge said, almost to herself. Mac silently thanked her for hiding the pack of cigarettes he knew she had somewhere. Probably in the pocket of her jacket hanging in the closet if he wanted to be honest, but he nipped the thought at the bud before it could fully start to influence him.

"How was work today, anyways?" Marge asked as the night developed more and they finished their brief, but admittedly very delicious, meal of the night.

"Two young men were out hanging around. It was a little suspicious and the one of them tried to play smart with Sasha and I when we walked up to them," Mac said, stretching as he stood and Marge collected the dirty dishes and silverware off the table.

"Sounds like it was interesting," she commented, meandering over to the sink and simply dumping the dishes with the rest of the stack she still needed to do this week.

Mac smiled privately. Knowing Marge, she probably wouldn't do them until she absolutely needed to. Which would probably be two days from current – Thursday.

"Yeah. I was fine, if that's what you're trying to imply," he said knowingly, turning to lead the way through the small home to the couch in the living room.

"I'm not implying anything, you smartass," Marge grumbled quietly from behind him.

Mac smirked as he allowed his body to easily collapse in a partially organized heap on the couch as Marge took the recliner chair and the TV remote.

"I swear, you're a spitting image of your old man," she added, turning on the TV to go through their nightly routine of flipping through channels on the guide to see if anything caught their interest before they resorted to a movie and then retreated to the bedrooms for the night. "Personality and all."

Mac shook his head, smirking again. "Yes, you tell me virtually _at least_ once a week, if not once a day when I walk through the door," he reminded her.

Marge shrugged as she continued flipping through the guide on the TV. "Well, you know me, Taylor. I'm an old woman."

"Oh, shut up, you're not that old," Mac said, frowning slightly as he almost fully interrupted her.

Marge shot a momentary glare at the younger man before she returned to her task. "Whatever you say, rookie. I ain't got the time for arguin' with your young mind."

Mac sighed. "Whatever. I can't win against you."

"Young man," Marge began, sitting down the remote, "You will almost _never_ win in an argument with a woman."

Mac nodded, holding his hands up. "Yes, yes, I know. I have enough practice with you. There's about two ways to argue with women, and ain't neither of 'em work worth shit," he told her. It was a basic statement he'd picked up off the older woman with ease.

Marge nodded approvingly, "For a young buck, you sure learn quick," she commented.

Mac shrugged, turning almost uninterested eyes out to the Chicago view through the windows. "What can I say? The old man raised me well with Ma," he replied.

Marge nodded. "And don't you go forgettin' those lessons too quick," she said, selecting a movie that was playing on the TV before she looked over at Mac. "Too many people do."

Mac nodded. Between the job and Marge's rather blunt method of teaching him basic moral and life lessons, some might leap the gap and say he was a little wiser beyond his years in some aspects. The job had done a hell of lot, even with only two years of experience.

"What's on?" Mac asked, changing the subject.

"Indiana Jones," Marge offered as a short answer.

Mac nodded, turning his attention to the screen as he stretched one more time as he lounged on the couch with a small smile. He knew he'd only get a more specific answer from the actual movie. Blunt, short, and sweet were the methods of the older Marge, and for Mac, that suited him just fine.

She wasn't going to give him everything – and that was her way of prepping him for what the real world did. But even she couldn't teach him some of the harder lessons.

Which ones he'd soon learn through experience was something neither him nor Marge could've predicted… and Mac certainly was far from seeing them coming.


	3. Chapter 3: Officer Involved

**My best friend helped me out with kind of this chapter and further out, so I just wanted to throw that out. She helped me out with picking apart my baddie introduced in this chapter a little bit, and the next a bit more. ;)**

**ooOOoo**

"Hey stranger!"

"Hey!" Mac greeted, grinning as fellow CPD officer, Trevor "Buck" Bentley, greeted him with a firm handshake. "It has been a _hell_ of a long time since I've seen you around! How the hell you been?"

Buck chuckled. "Oh, I've been alright. Long tells me you've grown into a fine officer. Figured I'd see for myself how your skills were comin' along. Wanna hit the firing range later?"

Mac smiled. "Sure. After shift?"

Buck nodded. "Sounds perfect. Meet you back here and we'll ride over together?"

Mac nodded. "I'll be here," he said.

Sasha walked in. "Taylor," she said, standing in the doorway. "We've got a disturbance call. I need you to ride with me."

Mac nodded and stood, checking his gun as he followed Sasha at a jog out to the patrol car. "Downtown?"

"A little ride towards the outlying areas," Sasha said. "Kinda bad area. It's amazing someone actually called it in," she added.

Mac nodded as he strapped on his seatbelt once they were in the car. "Best not waste time then," he said.

**ooOOoo**

Guns drawn, the two officers approached the door, listening quietly for anything to signal anyone was inside.

A single gunshot made them tense and Mac exchanged a look with Sasha before he kicked in the door and then followed Sasha inside. The senior officer motioned him forward as she stepped to the left out of his way to allow Mac to silently slip past her.

The light filtered softly through the curtains from the living room to the left as he stood in the hall. He stepped against the wall as he listened silently for a few seconds to the footsteps on the hardwood floors before he stepped into the doorway to the kitchen.

A tall, somewhat large man stood over the two motionless forms of a woman and man, gun in his hands. Mac didn't even have time to say, "Chicago PD," before the suspect was moving the gun to put a bullet in him.

But Mac shot quicker, standing tensed for a moment before he walked over and kicked the gun out of the reach of the now motionless figure. He turned his attention back to the man, checking for a pulse even though the gunshot wound that now stained his white shirt dark red told him enough.

_Dead,_ he confirmed, not able to find a pulse. He looked over his shoulder at the man and woman face down on the hardwood, frowning slightly. He didn't find a pulse on either of their bodies, but he did find corresponding wedding bands. A couple. He shook his head and stood, putting his gun in his holster as he did.

Sasha walked in with her gun drawn. "You alright?" she asked, looking over at Mac.

Mac nodded. "Yeah, but this disturbance is actually a murder," he said, nodding to the couple at his feet.

Sasha nodded, a hand lingering over her holster as she looked at the man Mac had shot. "This our suspect?" she asked.

Mac nodded, unable to miss a bit of different tone to Sasha's voice when she asked. "Yeah. Had to shoot in order to make sure you didn't walk in on a triple murder," he said, stepping carefully around the bodies and blood pools so he could check the hall again.

"Did you find anyone else –" The question wasn't even finished fully when he looked back at Sasha to find she had her gun aimed at him. "Sasha… What the hell?"

"Shut your damn mouth," Sasha growled. Mac was so stunned that he could only watch as she kept her gun aimed at him and walked over to kneel at the side of the man he previously had shot.

When she looked back up at him, grief and anger battled in her eyes. "You killed him!"

"He was an armed suspect," Mac said, holding his hands up and unable to comprehend the anger in Sasha's voice.

"He wasn't supposed to be here," Sasha growled softly, standing. For a moment, her aim on Mac wavered, but she quickly corrected herself. "You shouldn't have killed him, Taylor."

"Sasha, what has gotten into you?" Mac questioned, taking a step towards his partner before being stopped as she cocked the gun in her hands.

"You wouldn't understand," Sasha said with an almost twisted, sad smile. "I've never told anyone…"

She walked over to Mac, pressing the barrel of her gun against his chest and holding out her other hand flat. "I want that gun, Mac."

Mac searched her eyes for something to explain her sudden switch of personalities. "Sasha… What the hell is going on?"

"Do _not_ make me kill you, Officer Taylor," Sasha growled, moving her gun so that she pressed the barrel against his neck and pulling his gun from his holster and putting it in her own before she pressed him against the wall.

"Sasha!" Mac protested, eyes wide as she tightened her cuffs around his wrists. "Sasha, what the hell?"

She stepped back, glaring at him and keeping her gun trained on him.

Mac turned to face her, bewilderment in his eyes. "Sasha… Please… What the hell is going on? What are you doing?"

Sasha almost laughed, waving a hand at the younger man. "Dear Mac, have you not figured it out yet? I _worked_ with him," she said, jerking her head in the direction of the dead suspect. "Don't trust everyone when they tell you who they are, young man. You should've learned that one a hell of a long time ago.

Mac stared at her, mind racing as he tried to comprehend what was happening in front of him. What the hell was Sasha implying here?

Sasha flashed an innocent smile for him before she walked over, grabbing his arm and pressing her gun against his back. "C'mon, partner. Can't let anyone figure out that you know about this," she said, starting to walk him back towards the door.

"Hello?"

The small voice made her stop and turn around, moving her gun so that the barrel rested against the young officer's neck and holding a hand over his mouth to keep him quiet. Her eyes found a young girl standing in the hall. She was young, very young, with dirty blonde hair and deep blue eyes that were frightened. "Where's my mommy?"

Sasha smiled sweetly and Mac closed his eyes tightly as he knew Sasha's grip on the trigger tightened. "Your momma's a little busy right now, sweetie," Sasha said gently.

The young girl looked over Sasha standing there with her gun trained tightly against Mac and took a hesitant step backwards. "Are you an officer?"

Sasha nodded, not smiling anymore. "You can trust me," she said. "Now come along. I'm not ready to kill this young man just yet," she said, her voice hard and lacking each emotion it might've had before.

Mac didn't want to even believe he just heard Sasha correctly. First being involved with a criminal? Now ready to kill him in front of a young girl that had just lost her parents? _What the hell happened to you, Sasha?_

The young girl shook her head, warm tears starting to prick at her eyes. "Where's my mommy?" she asked again.

A snarl started to form on Sasha's face. "You're comin' with me, got it?" she snapped, moving her hand from over Mac's mouth to hold it out to the girl. "It's what your mommy would want, young girl."

"Sasha, please," Mac interrupted, looking at Sasha. "Don't do this!"

"Shut your damn mouth, you mother-fucking son of a bitch," Sasha growled, walking over and taking the girl by the arm roughly as she kept her gun aimed at Mac. "Get in the damn car outside parked on the side of the house, or I'll kill this girl now," she snapped, moving her gun to aim it at the young girl.

Mac felt his breath catch in his throat as he saw the young girl with tears streaking her cheeks, Sasha's gun aimed directly at her head. His disbelieving gaze turned to Sasha for a moment. She wasn't kidding around and Mac couldn't wrap his head around this one. Not wanting to anger his partner any more than she already seemed to be, he turned around and led the way down the hall and cautiously out of the house. The absolute last thing he needed was more people being tied up in this.

_Good God… What the hell is going on here?!_


End file.
